Mark Weatherley – Queen City Sounds and Art

Mark Weatherley’s Ever-Evolving Downtempo Single “Petrichor” is Like the Soothing Soundtrack to Transitional Seasons

Mark Weatherley, photo courtesy the artist

The beats in Mark Weatherley’s “Petrichor” shouldn’t work. The breakbeats start and stop, seem to change directions, pick back up and yet it all fits together like a moving puzzle with the harmonic and melodic motes of sound arranged so that the song constantly has an evolving and effervescent atmosphere. Like the direct experience of late spring weather when the environment hasn’t seemingly decided how it’s going to be except moment to moment. Weatherley captures as best a person can these micro-changes in mood and texture and fit that into the format of a song. There are no immediate touchstones but in the multitude of moments employed in the song one can hear peeps of late-90s Moby, sampled organic percussion and layers of luminous haunted sounds that drift through but soothe rather than startle. And then the song is over. What sets it apart from a good deal of electronic music is that the repetition never fully feels like it because Weatherley’s arrangements are so detailed and ever-shifting without feeling jarring and at worst merely disorienting in a way that feels comfortable. Listen to “Petrichor” on Spotify and follow Mark Weatherley at the links provided.

Mark Weatherley on Facebook

Mark Weatherley on Instagram

Mark Weatherley Finds the Essential Beauty in the Constant Flow of Stimuli of Everyday Life on Maximalist Downtempo Track “Around me”

“Around me” finds Mark Weatherley seeming to tape into both the realm of electro-soul-tinged dance music and sound design. Layered rhythms guide the flow of smooth, atmospheric melodies and harmonic vocals that sound like conversations that happen all around you in a large public space until about halfway through the song when the impressionistic arrangement of voices like a tonal placement in a hip-hop beat have a moment of absolute clarity of intention and an expression of affection expressed by one person for another with the rush of rhythms and tone falling away except for a minimal forward momentum slice of minimal percussion. Then back to the mosaic of sounds that reflect the sense of the time and the constant stimuli we’re bombarded with daily. It’s as if Weatherley finds beauty in the seeming chaos and almost accidental intersections of rhythm and to remind us that if we take a chance to slow down and focus we can find a gem in everyday life if we have the will to not be distracted by everything potentially demanding our attention. Listen to “Around me” on Spotify and follow UK-based producer and songwriter Mark Weatherley at the links below.

Mark Weatherley on Facebook

Mark Weatherley on Instagram

Mark Weatherley Layers Downtempo Moods and Breakbeat Rhythms in “Yearn” to Convey Emotional Urgency of Feeling Like a Relationship at a Crossroads

“Yearn” begins with great momentum and the vocals Mark Weatherley puts into the track while highly processed convey the aching emotions expressed. “I don’t want want to miss you like this” in the chorus sums up the mood of the song. It expresses the feeling like you do miss someone but when you feel like the relationship has ended or in significant flux leaving one or both people feeling confused and lost when that bond may be in peril. Desperate might be too strong a word but it approaches the exact energy of those moments of poignant uncertainty. The switch-up in percussion styles throughout the track is reminiscent of a mashup of early early 2000s breakbeat but the way the song is arranged it has great atmospheric resonance like a downtempo song but infused with a sense of emotional urgency. Listen to “Yearn” on Spotify and follow Mark Weatherley at the links below.